Wild salmon healthier, costlier to eat than farmed salmon

QUESTION: Should I eat farmed or wild salmon? I know that farmed salmon may not be as healthy, and fish farms tend to be environmentally damaging. However, many wild runs of salmon are on the brink and I do not want to contribute to their demise.Asked by Amy Fowler, San Jose, Calif.

ANSWER: For being the same animal, farmed salmon and wild salmon are drastically different. They present different levels of health risk and environmental impact, and they even taste different to avid salmon connoisseurs. But which should we eat?

Salmon, found in both the Northern Atlantic and Northern Pacific oceans, once spawned in rivers in North America, Asia and Europe. However, damming up rivers and cutting down nearby forests has distressed — and even eliminated — many salmon runs. Heavy fishing hasn’t helped either. As the number of wild salmon decreased, more fish farms started popping up to meet the increasing consumer demand for salmon. Farmed fish, the Atlantic species of salmon, are raised in net cages in calm areas near the shore. The farms supply cheap salmon year round, while wild salmon supplies are much more seasonal. Continue Reading >>